The FBI has been investigating the
long-stalled Kenwood Towne Place development for the past year, and a
grand jury will determine whether crimes were committed involving the
improper use of funding for the project, according to The Enquirer.
CityBeat on May 16 reported that Nathan Bachrach, host of local radio
show Simply Money, was among those in heat over the
development's debt.
The city of Cincinnati used eminent
domain to secure a piece of Over-the-Rhine property to build its
streetcar maintenance facility.
So, uh, Councilwoman Laure Quinlivan
rewrote the lyrics to John Fogerty’s “Proud Mary” (“Rolin' on
the River”) as part of a promotion for the World Choir Games.
Celebrities such as Bootsy Collins, Nick Lachey and Jerry Springer
participated. Cool? Awkward? The city does look pretty nice — shots
were filmed at Fountain Square, Great American Ballpark, Findlay
Market, the School for Creative and Performing Arts and the
Serpentine Wall.John Edwards is basically off the hook after
jurors returned from nine days of deliberations believing that the
government did not prove its case. Edwards was found guilty one one
charge of accepting illegal campaign contributions to hide his
pregnant mistress, but a mistrial was declared on five charges.
President Obama and Mitt Romney
reportedly spoke on the phone yesterday. Romney says they exchanged
pleasantries and congratulations. Obama apparently gave Romney some credit for his health care bill, which sounds kind of passive aggressive.
The nation's unemployment rate is up to
8.2 percent; apparently a third month of disappointing payroll led to
the addition of only 69,000 jobs.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
is being called “Nanny Bloomberg” in response to his proposed ban
on extra large sodas by people such as 18-year-old Johnny Ojeda of
Kansas City, who reportedly pounded a 21-ounce soda and its 240
calories in front of Kansas City Star reporters.
“A lot of teenagers get them,” said
Ojeda,
On the other hand, today is National
Donut Day.
And cancer is expected to increase
worldwide by 75 percent by 2030, partly due to poor nations adopting
unhealthy Westernized lifestyles.
DC Comics' Green Lantern is revealed to be gay in an issue that comes
out next week. Green Lantern is one of the comics' oldest heroes and
the latest in a growing number of out superheroes. From the San
Jose Mercury News:
In May, Marvel
Entertainment said super speedster Northstar will marry his longtime
boyfriend in the pages of "Astonishing X-Men." DC comics
has other gay characters, too, including Kate Kane, the current
Batwoman.
And in the pages of Archie Comics, Kevin Keller is one of the
gang at Riverdale High School and gay, too.
Some groups have protested the inclusion of gay characters, but
Robinson isn't discouraged, noting that being gay is just one aspect
to Scott.
"This guy, he's a media mogul, a hero, a dynamic type-A
personality and he's gay," Robinson said. "He's a complex
character."

Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel has returned
more than $100,000 in campaign contributions in response to an FBI
investigation into 21 donors who had no record of giving to federal
campaigns and many appearing to have low incomes. Mandel, a
Republican, is running against incombent Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown.
Mandel's campaign treasurer Kathryn Kessler sent a letter to donors
explaining that any contributions appearing to be under investigation
would be refunded.
From The Toledo Blade:
Although the campaign provided a copy of the letter to The
Blade, it would not explain the timing of the decision or how long it
has been aware of the federal probe.
The Blade revealed the unusual pattern of contributions in
August.
The company's owner, Benjamin Suarez, and 16 of his employees
(plus some of their spouses) gave about $200,000 to Mr. Mandel and
U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci (R., Wadsworth) last year. Each of those donors
gave $5,000, the maximum allowable amount, to one or both candidates.
The Ohio Senate yesterday passed new
fracking regulations, and the final version caused some environmental
organizations to change their stance on the bill. The Ohio
Environmental Council and the Sierra Club had both been neutral on
the legislation until changes were made forcing anyone suing over
chemical trade secrets to show current or potential harm, according
to The Enquirer. The regulations are part of Kasich's new energy bill
and easily passed both the Senate and House and is expected to be
signed by Kasich soon.
Cincinnati Public Schools says it will
apply for the latest available federal education grants, which amount
to nearly $700 million. The grants are geared toward helping schools
proceed with reform and innovation.
According to a new poll, President
Obama leads Mitt Romney in Ohio by six percentage points. Wonder if
Obama's “cow pie of distortion” speech had anything to do with
his lead.
The John Edwards trial has entered day
six of deliberations.
United Nations inspectors have
reportedly found uranium in Iran enriched beyond the highest levels
previously reported. One diplomat said the measure could actually be
a measurement error, though the reading could also mean that Iran is
closer to producing bomb-grade uranium than previously thought.
Scientists might be one step closer to
creating birth control for men after U.K. scientists found a gene
used to enable sperm to mature.
From USA Today: “Profits at big U.S.
companies broke records last year, and so did pay for CEOs.”
Facebook's initial public offering
didn't go entirely as expected, and some investors are getting
refunds after technical problems and other issues marred the
company's first week of trading.
The Reds completed a four-game sweep of
the Atlanta Braves last night, winning their sixth in a row and
overtaking the St. Louis Cardinal for first place in the NL Central.

We Are Ohio, the organization that helped repeal SB5 last year, says it will team up with
nonpartisan Ohio Voters First to help put on the November ballot a
constitutional amendment that would change the way legislative and
congressional districts are drawn. The effort is in response to
Republican-drawn redistricting maps that attempted to create 12
solidly GOP districts and four Democratic districts. The proposal
calls for a nonpartisan commission to redraw legislative and
congressional boundaries rather than letting politicians and anyone
who gives them money do it.
The University of Cincinnati has
released a study showing a considerable economic impact from
construction of The Banks. Between construction contractors, new
residents and visitors to the area's restaurants, the development reportedly will impact the local economy by more than $90 million a year.
The parent company of Cincinnati's
Horseshoe Casino will host two informational sessions this week to
offer local vendors information on how to bid on contracts for
supplies and services the entertainment complex will need. The first
takes place 6 p.m. tonight at Bell Events Centre near the casino site at 444 Reading Road,
and the second is 9 a.m. Thursday at Great American Ball Park.
The Enquirer on Tuesday reported that
the University of Cincinnati and Xavier University have agreed to
move the Crosstown Shootout to U.S. Bank Arena for two years in
response to last year's massive brawl. NBC Sports today reported that
the presents of both universities issued a press release in response,
stating that no final decision had been made.
The University of Cincinnati and
Xavier University were both surprised to see today’s announcement
concerning the future of the Crosstown Shootout. While both schools
are committed to the future of the Crosstown rivalry, specific
discussions are ongoing and no details have been finalized. We look
forward to sharing our plans with the community at an appropriate
time in the coming weeks.
If it does happen,
The Enquirer's Bill Koch says it's reasonable, while Paul
Daugherty says that's fine but kind of dumb.
President Obama is
finding it rather difficult to even win primaries against nobodies in
the South. Not that it's surprise or really matters, though.
Of course, there are reasons for these
kinds of returns. Few Democrats are voting in these primaries where
Obama faces only token opposition; only protest voters are truly
motivated.
There's also the fact that Obama is an underdog to Republican
candidate Mitt Romney in the states of Kentucky, Arkansas, and West
Virginia; Obama lost all three in 2008 to John McCain.
Another potential factor: Race.
Just when you
thought Sarah Palin was super reliable, she goes and backs a Utah
Republican incumbent over a tea party supported candidate.
The John Edwards
jury entered its fourth day of deliberations today because they need
to see more prosecution exhibits.
A white supremacist
was sentenced to 40 years in jail by a federal judge for a 2004
package bomb attack that injured a black city administrator in
Arizona.
European
researchers say they can figure out if Bigfoot really existed, if
they can just get one of his hairs. The film version of On the Road
premiered at the Cannes Film Festival today, 55 years after Jack
Kerouac's Beat Generation-defining novel was published. London's The
Guardian says the “handsome
shots and touching sadness don't compensate for the tedious air of
self-congratulation in Walter Salles's road movie.”